Pads for cleaning, polishing or buffing are known in the prior art. Such pads come in a variety of forms such as sponges for the absorbency of wastes and also for the delivery of certain cleaning agents absorbed therein. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,323,656 entitled Polyurethane Sponges Manufactured With Additive Dispersed Therein and issued on Apr. 6, 1982 discloses a synthetic polyurethane sponge manufactured with at least 5% of one or more additives dispersed therein. The additives may be surfactants, lotions, detergents, pesticides, lanolin, scouring particles, silicone oils, bath oils, or the like or combinations thereof.
Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,970,750 entitled Cleaning Device and issued on Nov. 20, 1990 describes a cleaning device used for bathtubs, shower enclosures, and the like. It comprises a sponge block having an outer surface which substantially defines a rectangular polyhedron in shape and which has a cavity cut into a top surface thereof which is similarly shaped and oriented correspondingly as is the outer surface of the sponge block. Also, a rigid support block, having an outer surface with length and breadth dimensions which are approximately the same as the size and shape of the length and breadth dimensions of a cavity surface, is adhered in the cavity by a chemical (cleaning), detergent, and water resistant, elastic, adhesive and an elongated handle is attached to a top surface of the support block.
Likewise, U.S. Pat. No. 5,387,290 entitled Hand Polishing Technique For Automobile And Other Vehicles issued on Feb. 7, 1995 describes a method of hand cleaning or polishing an exterior body surface of a vehicle, e.g., an automobile, using a pad formed with a handle attachment part having a first flat surface substantially parallel with a bottom work surface of the pad. A handle is provided with a pad engaging part having a second flat surface.
What all of the prior art above, and other prior art like it, fail to teach is a mechanically expandable pad having mechanically expansive properties. Specifically the prior art does not provide for a mechanically expandable pad used in cleaning, polishing, buffing, etc. that can expand by a mechanical device inserted into the mechanically expandable pad.
Therefore, it is an object herein to provide a mechanically expandable pad that expands substantially out of the x-y plane and into the z-plane to form a puffed configuration.